Visited clients home and after discussion with the client and his wife who are both unsteady on their feet, I established two requirements relating to the client’s egress and ingress; a. to restrain the door open and b. to fit a ‘grab’ handle next to the door entrance to steady the clients as they negotiate a large step up into the static home.

I purchased proprietry grab handles and door chains from B&Q and manufactured a hardwood frame to fit over the metal railings adjacent to the door when open. I then fitted the grab handle and door chain, with the free end of the chain fitted to the hardwood frame, see 3 photos attached . The clients were satisfied with the installation.

New grab handle

Door restraining chain

Completed project

Case 500- Following a nasty fall requiring the use a Zimmer frame indoors, a M-S client requested a “drop leaf” tray to be fitted to her Zimmer frame so that she get close up access to her kitchen work top (when the tray was “dropped down” ) and use it to transport cutlery/china etc from there to her dining area when in the “up” position. This greatly helped her self confidence and feeling of independence within the home.

photos awaited.

Case 502 – Mobile work station – a hospital administrator recovering from a debilitating medical condition required a lightweight “mobile work station” which could be easily wheeled around the widespread hospital departments. As this involved going outside it required a detachable waterproof cover to protect her iPad, laptop computer equipment from the unpredictable Cornish weather. A stylish kitchen trolley was purchased from IKEA and larger castors with brakes were fitted . A hinged wooden work top, which served as the main work surface was attached to the top tray and her all equipment which could be stored under the lid. Finally a waterproof cover was made by a local firm of sail-makers which could easily be dropped over the top when required. The finished product looked presentable & easily transportable around the extensive grounds of the hospital and facilitated an early return to her work related duties.

work station -lid closed

work station lid open

Case 503- an elderly lady wanted a fixed tray to be fitted to her gutter arm Zimmer frame to enable her to move food & cutlery from her kitchen to her living area .

Case 504- a young man with severe cerebral palsy wanted a modified chess set so that each of the 64 positions on the board was recessed so the pieces could be slotted in and would not not be disturbed by his poor manual control. At the first visit his dexterity was assessed and found he would be able to manage a larger (than standard) size board 16″ x 16″ – with 4″ kings/queens. The prototype was made up of a 9mm plywood based which was inscribed by laser into an alternating cross hatched pattern. A 6mm thick sheet of acrylic was carefully cut with 35mm holes x 64 by computer controlled laser – exactly matching the board. Then a cut out disc was glued to the bases of each of the chess pieces.

At the second visit the prototype was assessed by the client when was the clearance between the chess piece + disc was found to be too tight fitting in each “recess”, which needed to be deeper and also the size of the board needed to be reduced in order to fit on to the tray attached to his wheelchair.

A second board was made -this time 14 x 14″ in size and three sheets of acrylic giving a total thickness of 14mm were used and the cut out holes enlarged to 37mm -giving larger clearance & easier usage. This was a great improvement in usability.

Case 524 – A young lady with severe early onset juvenile arthritis had impaired mobility & required a wheel chair except for short distances. This could be adapted into a Powertrike by the addition of a single electric powered front wheel -complete with handlebars, brakes & two speed controller . Its high top speed and long range gave her many hours of enhanced mobility and her husband was frequently hard pressed to keep up with her on his (non electric) bicycle! A local mobility centre was first approached when electrical faults developed but declined as this involved re-soldering two pairs of the leads connected to the controller box and its future was very much in doubt!

However a simple repair was effected, without soldering using climped electrical connectors (as used in marine applications) which bypassed the original two 2 pin plug/socket arrangement for a modest outlay (£15) . A test run confirmed this fearsome piece of equipment was up & running and ready for further adventures.

Power trike -as new

Case 522 – the client with Parkinson’s disease associated with abnormal movement of her limbs( dyskinesia) has difficulty in keeping her Left foot on the pedal of her exercise bicycle which she uses twice daily to maintain her physical fitness. Her Left foot tended to turn in (pidgeon toed) and the same ankle buckles outwards thereby dislodging her foot from the pedal despite using a toe guard .

First a wooden pattern was made by drawing round the sole of her Left trainer on to a piece of 3/8″ utile wood and then cut out on a bandsaw. Next her trainer was wrapped round by 6″ high soft card and a suitable pattern was drawn around the trainer – low across the forefoot (facilitating insertion of the trainer) but raising higher towards the heel (giving more support over the ankle area)The cardboard pattern was then cut used to construct an aluminium side to the bootie and attached at 2″ intevals by screws to the wooden sole pattern. The wood soled & metal sided bootie was then finally attached to her pedal by means 2 x 6mm bolts.

She could now easily insert her Left trainer into the new bootie which enabled her foot to maintain the correct alignment (fore -aft) and the high ankle support prevented her ankle from buckling -enabling her to use her exercise bicycle successfully.